I’ve been giving some thought to next year. Which to my astonishment is 2011, a year which I distinctly recall existing only in science fiction novels. But I digress.
At this point I’ve been to 50 out of 83 counties in Michigan. As you can see from the map, the remaining ones are clumped together (some moreso than others) in three sets:
- The Wrist – the two rows of counties along the border with Ohio and Indiana.
- The Western UP – the counties that are closer to Wisconsin than to Lake Michigan.
- The Rest – that counties I missed on my north-south runs so far, plus two in the eastern UP.
These sets constitute my next three big rides.
The route to cover the Wrist is pretty obvious: ride across the state from west to east, then from east to west. I wouldn’t need to go all the way to Lakes Erie and Michigan, but that would make it more fun: a “coast to coast” ride. Because it’s nearby and a fairly short distance, this is a ride I could do in as little as 4-5 days.
For the Western UP, I’d have to retrace my scooter-steps a little, taking the ferry across Lake Michigan to Manitowoc then heading north to loop through the counties. Sadly, I’d have to skip my beloved Isle Royale, since motor vehicles can’t go there. (Maybe an overnight visit on foot?) If I had enough time, I could take a detour up to Wisconsin’s Door County (the peninsula which makes Green Bay), which I skipped on my “around Lake Michigan” ride.
The way to take in the Rest isn’t difficult to figure out. I could ride “up” through the western string of counties, cross the Bridge and visit Tahquamenon Falls and Sault Ste Marie, then ride “down” through the eastern string of counties. The main obstacle to this is crossing the Bridge from the north, where the toll booth attendant might stop me because my scooter isn’t “big” enough.
All three have a certain appeal to them. The question is which to do next….